Governor’s offer to revive Vagai river sparks political controversy

APolitical row erupted in Tamil Nadu on fri after regulator Rajendra Arlekar said his power would occupy the top in restoring the stagnant Vaigai River if necessary, prompting sharp criticism from the ruling Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) government and attacks from the opposition.Addressing an event at a college in Madurai on Thursday, Arlekar said he was surprised to find no water flowing in the Vaigai River.“As I was coming from Madurai Circuit House, when we were crossing one bridge, he (Governor’s personal assistant) showed me this is river. Its name is Vaigai river. I was surprised. You call this river? where is the water? there was no water in Vaigai river,” he said.Calling upon the youth to work towards reviving the river, Arlekar said:“Let us decide to have water in this river now. That will be our main task, youth from Madurai. We will try to do it.”He added, “Our whole youth force should be in the development of our country, of our society, of our state and this is the development we need. Just imagine if we get water into that river, what a civilisation will be there on the banks of the river. Our youth force has to decide this. Somebody has to take a lead. If not somebody, Lok Bhavan will take a lead for these. We will develop this and see that water flows again through this Vaigai river. We will work for this. Our youth force has to be channelised.”The remarks drew a strong response from the ruling TVK government. State minister for energy resources and law R. Nirmalkumar said the Governor was acting beyond the remit of his office.“However, the Governor has no right to come and inspect without any such authority, and this government will not permit.”He added, “If the Governor unnecessarily interferes anywhere in this government’s administration or attempts to conduct inspections, it will be severely condemned. We explicitly request on behalf of this government that no officials should extend any cooperation without the government’s approval.”Nirmalkumar said such actions would create “uncalled for confusion” when an elected government was in place.The opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) also criticised the development.Udhayanidhi Stalin said, “While even the maintenance of the governor’s mansion (Lok Bhavan) is handled by the Tamil Nadu government, he (Arlekar) has spoken aggressively, claiming that if the government does not restore the Vaigai river, the governor’s mansion will step on to the field. The ruling party’s sheer incompetence is the sole reason behind the Governor’s foolish audacity.”The former deputy chief minister added, “We had previously questioned in the legislative assembly about what compromise was made to the extent that the importance of the Tamil Thai Vazhthu (state anthem) was diminished in government events attended by the Governor.”“The ruling party members, who failed to give a proper answer to that, have now exposed themselves completely by allowing the Governor to conduct inspections and compromising on state rights.”The Communist Party of India (Marxist), which extends outside support to the Tamil Nadu government, also criticised the Governor’s remarks.State secretary P. Shanmugam said, “If the Governor happens to have any opinions or views, he should bring them to the attention of the Chief Minister to find a resolution. Instead, the Governor acting independently goes entirely against the powers vested in him by the Constitution.”Defending Arlekar, former Tamil Nadu BJP chief Tamilisai Soundararajan said the Governor had only raised a genuine public issue.“The Hon’ble Tamil Nadu Governor rightly stated that if the state government fails to act, Lok Bhavan will step in to support the efforts. That message was about public welfare, not politics.”She added, “The real issue is not the Governor’s visit to Madurai. The real issue is the polluted condition of our rivers. Tamil Nadu deserves action, not political diversion.”